Bodies hang from trees as Philippines typhoon death toll climbs (updated, with video)

Jim Gomez, The Associated Press11.11.2013

Residents evacuate the area on Nov. 10, 2013 in Tacloban City, Leyte, Philippines. Typhoon Haiyan, packing maximum sustained winds of 195 mph (315 kph), slammed into the southern Philippines and left a trail of destruction in multiple provinces, forcing hundreds of thousands to evacuate and making travel by air and land to hard-hit provinces difficult. Around 10,000 people are feared dead in the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year.Jeoffrey Maitem
/ Getty Images

A resident looks at houses damaged by typhoon Haiyan, in Tacloban city, Leyte province central Philippines on Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013. Haiyan, one of the most powerful typhoons ever recorded slammed into central Philippine provinces Friday leaving a wide swath of destruction and scores of people dead. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

Two young boys look at the devastation in the aftermath of typhoon Haiyan on November 10, 2013 in Tacloban City, Leyte, Philippines. Typhoon Haiyan, packing maximum sustained winds of 195 mph (315 kph), slammed into the southern Philippines and left a trail of destruction in multiple provinces, forcing hundreds of thousands to evacuate and making travel by air and land to hard-hit provinces difficult. Around 10,000 people are feared dead in the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year.Dondi Tawatao
/ Getty Images

Residents look at bodies brought inside a damaged chapel Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013, a day after powerful Typhoon Haiyan slammed Tacloban city, in Leyte province in central Philippines. Rescuers in the central Philippines counted at least 100 people dead and many more injured Saturday, a day after one of the most powerful typhoons on record ripped through the region, wiping away buildings and leveling seaside homes with massive storm surges. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)

A man walks past debris of destroyed houses in Tacloban, eastern island of Leyte on November 10, 2013. The Pentagon said it was providing the Philippines with naval and aviation resources in the wake of a devastating typhoon. The UN said that it expected the provisional 1,200 death toll from super typhoon Haiyan to rise and is sending emergency supplies to the stricken country.NOEL CELIS
/ AFP/Getty Images

People remove fallen trees from a road in Daanbantayan town, north Cebu, central Philippines, after typhoon Haiyan hit the region, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013. Typhoon Haiyan, one of the most powerful storms on record, slammed into six central Philippine islands on Friday, leaving a wide swath of destruction and scores of people dead.

Residents stand under a shelter surrounded by pile of debris washed inland along a road in Tacloban, Leyte province, central Philippines on November 10, 2013, three days after devastating Typhoon Haiyan hit the city on November 8. The death toll from a super typhoon that decimated entire towns in the Philippines could soar well over 10,000, authorities warned on November 10, making it the country’s worst recorded natural disaster.TED ALJIBE
/ AFP/Getty Images

An aerial view of buildings destroyed in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan on Sunday over the Leyte province, Philippines. Around 10,000 people are feared dead in the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year.Ryan Lim/Malacanang Photo Bureau via Getty Images
/ Ryan Lim/Malacanang Photo Bureau via Getty Images

Residents walk past the devastation caused by Typhoon Haiyan, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013, in Daanbantayan town, north Cebu, central Philippines. Typhoon Haiyan, one of the most powerful storms on record, slammed into six central Philippine islands on Friday, leaving a wide swath of destruction and scores of people dead.

Survivors walk through the rubble of damaged homes and a ship that was washed ashore in Tacloban city, Leyte province, central Philippines on Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013. The city remains littered with debris from damaged homes as many complain of shortages of food and water and no electricity since Typhoon Haiyan slammed into their province. Haiyan, one of the most powerful storms on record, slammed into six central Philippine islands on Friday, leaving a wide swath of destruction and scores of people dead. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

A resident passes by toppled car outside an airport terminal after powerful Typhoon Haiyan slammed into Tacloban city, Leyte province central Philippines on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013. Rescuers in the central Philippines counted at least 100 people dead and many more injured Saturday, a day after one of the most powerful typhoons on record ripped through the region.Aaron Favila
/ AP

Widespread devastation is left behind in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan on November 10, 2013 in Tacloban, Leyte, Philippines. Typhoon Haiyan, packing maximum sustained winds of 195 mph (315 kph), slammed into the southern Philippines and left a trail of destruction in multiple provinces, forcing hundreds of thousands to evacuate and making travel by air and land to hard-hit provinces difficult. Around 10,000 people are feared dead in the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year.Jeoffrey Maitem
/ Getty Images

People stand at the pier as Super Typhoon Haiyan smashes into coastal communities on the central island of Bacalod on November 8, 2013.JULIUS MARIVELES
/ AFP/Getty Images

A house is engulfed by the storm surge brought about by powerful typhoon Haiyan that hit Legazpi city, Albay province Friday Nov.8, 2013 about 520 kilometers (325 miles) south of Manila, Philippines.Nelson Salting
/ AP

A resident sifts through the rubble of his damaged house following a powerful typhoon that hit Tacloban city, in Leyte province, central Philippines Saturday Nov.9, 2013. The central Philippine city of Tacloban was in ruins Saturday, a day after being ravaged by Typhoon Haiyan, one of the strongest typhoons on record, as horrified residents spoke of storm surges as high as trees and authorities said they were expecting a “very high number of fatalities.”Bullit Marquez
/ AP

A resident walks by remains of houses after powerful Typhoon Haiyan slammed into Tacloban city, Leyte province central Philippines on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013. Rescuers in the central Philippines counted at least 100 people dead and many more injured Saturday, a day after one of the most powerful typhoons on record ripped through the region, wiping away buildings and leveling seaside homes with massive storm surges.Aaron Favila
/ AP

Residents sift through the rubble of their damaged house following a powerful typhoon that hit Tacloban city, in Leyte province, central Philippines Saturday, Nov. 9, 2013. The central Philippine city of Tacloban was in ruins Saturday, a day after being ravaged by Typhoon Haiyan, one of the strongest typhoons on record, as horrified residents spoke of storm surges as high as trees and authorities said they were expecting a “very high number of fatalities.”Bullit Marquez
/ AP

Soldiers make the rounds to enforce the evacuation of residents as powerful typhoon Haiyan hits Legazpi city, Albay province about 520 kilometers (325 miles) south of Manila, Philippines Friday. Typhoon Haiyan, one of the most powerful typhoons ever recorded slammed into the Philippines on Friday, setting off landslides, knocking out power in one entire province and cutting communications in the country's central region of island provinces.Nelson Salting
/ AP Photo

A man walks by the shoreline as Super Typhoon Haiyan smashes into coastal communities on the central island of Cebu on November 8, 2013.STR
/ AFP/Getty Images

In this image provided by NOAA Friday Nov. 8, 2013 which was taken at 12:30 a.m. EST shows Typhoon Haiyan as it crosses the Philippines. One of the most powerful typhoons ever recorded slammed into the Philippines on Friday, setting off landslides, knocking out power in one entire province and cutting communications in the country's central region of island provinces. Weather officials say that Haiyan had sustained winds at 235 kilometers (147 miles) per hour, with gusts of 275 kph (170 mph) when it made landfall.NOAA
/ AP Photo

Workers examine the damage after a giant Christmas tree was toppled by strong winds at the onslaught of the powerful typhoon Haiyan that hit the island province of Cebu, Philippines, Friday Nov. 8, 2013. One of the most powerful typhoons ever recorded slammed into the Philippines on Friday, setting off landslides, knocking out power in one entire province and cutting communications in the country's central region of island provinces.Chester Baldicantos
/ AP Photo

A mother and her children brave heavy rains as they head for an evacuation center amidst strong winds as Typhoon Haiyan pounded Cebu City, in central Philippines on Nov. 8, 2013.STR
/ AFP/Getty Images

Workers examine the damage after a giant Christmas tree was toppled by strong winds at the onslaught of the powerful typhoon Haiyan that hit the island province of Cebu, Philippines, Friday Nov. 8, 2013. One of the most powerful typhoons ever recorded slammed into the Philippines on Friday, setting off landslides, knocking out power in one entire province and cutting communications in the country's central region of island provinces.Chester Baldicantos
/ AP Photo

A Ro-Ro boat is moored at a pier as Super Typhoon Haiyan smashes into coastal communities on the central island of Bacolod on Nov. 8, 2013.AFP
/ AFP/Getty Images

Related

TACLOBAN, Philippines — Corpses hung from trees, were scattered on sidewalks or buried in flattened buildings — some of the thousands believed killed in one Philippine city alone by ferocious typhoon Haiyan that washed away homes and buildings with powerful winds and giant waves.

As the scale of devastation became clear Sunday from one of the worst storms ever recorded, officials said emergency crews could find more bodies when they reach parts of the archipelago cut off by flooding and landslides. Desperate residents raided grocery stores and gas stations in search of food, fuel and water as the government began relief efforts and international aid operations got underway.

Even in a nation regularly beset by earthquakes, volcanoes and tropical storms, typhoon Haiyan appears to be the deadliest natural disaster on record.

Haiyan hit the eastern seaboard of the Philippines on Friday and quickly barrelled across its central islands, packing winds of 235 km/h that gusted to 275 km/h, and a storm surge of six metres.

Its sustained winds weakened to 133 km/h as it crossed the South China Sea before approaching northern Vietnam, where it was forecast to hit land early Monday.

Hardest hit in the Philippines was Leyte Island, where regional Police Chief Elmer Soria said the provincial governor had told him there were about 10,000 dead, primarily from drowning and collapsed buildings. Most were in Tacloban, the provincial capital of about 200,000 people that is the biggest city on the island.

On Samar Island, Leo Dacaynos of the provincial disaster office said 300 people were confirmed dead in one town and another 2,000 were missing, with some towns yet to be reached by rescuers. He pleaded for food and water, adding that power was out and there was no cellphone signal, making communication possible only by radio.

Desperate pleas for help delivered over the few functioning radios have only increased the rescue teams’ dread of what awaits them when they do arrive.

With communications still knocked out in many areas, it was unclear how authorities were arriving at their estimates of the number of people killed, and it will be days before the full extent of the storm is known.

“On the way to the airport, we saw many bodies along the street,” said Philippine-born Australian Mila Ward, 53, who was waiting at the Tacloban airport to catch a military flight back to Manila, about 580 kilometres to the northwest. “They were covered with just anything — tarpaulin, roofing sheets, cardboard.” She said she passed “well over 100” bodies.

In one part of Tacloban, a ship had been pushed ashore and sat amid damaged homes.

Haiyan inflicted serious damage to at least six of the archipelago’s more than 7,000 islands, with Leyte, Samar and the northern part of Cebu appearing to bear the brunt of the storm. About four million people were affected by the storm, the national disaster agency said.

Video from Eastern Samar province’s Guiuan township — the first area where the typhoon made landfall — showed a trail of devastation. Many houses were flattened and roads were strewn with debris and uprooted trees.

“Even me, I have no house, I have no clothes. I don’t know how I will restart my life, I am so confused,” an unidentified woman said, crying. “I don’t know what happened to us. We are appealing for help. Whoever has a good heart, I appeal to you — please help Guiuan.”

In Tacloban and the surrounding province of Leyte island, aid convoys were being raided and shops stripped of everything remaining on their shelves by starving survivors.

“Some people are losing their minds from hunger or from losing their families,” said Andrew Pomeda, a teacher in Tacloban.

A Philippine Red Cross convoy was attacked, the perpetrators described as “mobsters” by the organization’s chairman, Richard Gordon.

Tacloban’s two largest malls and grocery stores were looted, and police guarded a fuel depot. About 200 police officers were sent into Tacloban to restore law and order.

In the three days since Haiyan ravaged Tacloban, so little aid has reached the city that residents have abandoned their normal restraint.

“People are dirty, hungry and thirsty,” said Emma Bermejo, a pastry shop owner. “A few more days, and they will start to kill each other.” One local described Tacloban’s shocked, homeless residents as if they were no longer human. “People are walking the streets like zombies looking for food,” said Jenny Chu, a student.

Amid the rampant looting, President Benigno Aquino III said he was considering declaring a state of emergency or martial law in Tacloban. A state of emergency usually includes curfews, price and food supply controls, military or police checkpoints and increased security patrols.

The massive casualties occurred even though the government had evacuated nearly 800,000 people ahead of the typhoon.

Aquino flew around Leyte by helicopter on Sunday and landed in Tacloban. He said the government’s priority was to restore power and communications in isolated areas and deliver relief and medical assistance.

Challenged to respond to a disaster of such magnitude, the Philippine government also accepted help from abroad.

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird said the government is considering activating the Disaster Assistance Response Team to help typhoon victims. The DART is largely a military team that can provide a variety of services such as emergency medical care and clean water.

Minister of International Development Christian Paradis announced Sunday that Ottawa will match each dollar of typhoon aid donated by Canadians to registered charities. The government earlier said it would contribute as much as $5 million to support humanitarian organizations helping typhoon victims.

Some Canadian organizations have already sent teams to assist in the aid efforts.

A four-person rapid response Global Medic crew left Toronto for the Philippines on Sunday, taking with it water purification units and other supplies.

U.S. President Barack Obama said in a statement that he and his wife, Michelle, were “deeply saddened” by the deaths and damage from the typhoon. He said the U.S. was providing “significant humanitarian assistance” and was ready to assist in relief and recovery efforts.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was “extremely concerned” by the widespread destruction and the steeply rising death toll, according to a statement released by his office.

Ban said the UN and its humanitarian partners “have quickly ramped up critical relief operations” even though many communities remain difficult to reach, the statement added.

Pope Francis led tens of thousands of people at the Vatican in prayer for the victims. The Philippines has the largest number of Catholics in Asia.

The Philippines is annually buffeted by tropical storms and typhoons, which are called hurricanes and cyclones elsewhere. The nation is in the northwestern Pacific, right in the path of the world’s No. 1 typhoon generator, according to meteorologists.

Even by the standards of the Philippines, however, Haiyan is a catastrophe of epic proportions and has shocked the impoverished and densely populated nation of 96 million people. Its winds were among the strongest ever recorded, and it appears to have killed more people than the previous deadliest Philippine storm, Thelma, in which about 5,100 people died in the central Philippines in 1991.

The country’s deadliest disaster on record was the 1976 magnitude-7.9 earthquake that triggered a tsunami in the Moro Gulf in the southern Philippines, killing 5,791 people.

Defence Secretary Voltaire Gazmin said Aquino was “speechless” when he told him of the devastation in Tacloban.

“I told him all systems are down,” Gazmin said. “There is no power, no water, nothing. People are desperate. They’re looting.”

Tacloban, in the east-central Philippines, is near the Red Beach on Leyte Island where U.S. Gen. Douglas MacArthur waded ashore in 1944 during the Second World War and fulfilled his famous pledge: “I shall return.”

One Tacloban resident said he and others took refuge inside a Jeep, but the vehicle was picked up by a surging wall of water.

“The water was as high as a coconut tree,” said 44-year-old Sandy Torotoro, a bicycle taxi driver who lives near the airport with his wife and 8-year-old daughter. “I got out of the Jeep and I was swept away by the rampaging water with logs, trees and our house, which was ripped off from its mooring.

“When we were being swept by the water, many people were floating and raising their hands and yelling for help. But what can we do? We also needed to be helped,” Torotoro said.

In Torotoro’s village, bodies were strewn along the muddy main road as now-homeless residents huddled with the few possessions they managed to save.

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.

Share

Bodies hang from trees as Philippines typhoon death toll climbs (updated, with video)

Video

Today's News

Best of Postmedia

Be afraid. Be very afraid. Ignore the diversions in the United States: athletes kneeling or standing during the national anthem; Republicans flailing and failing again on health care; a kick-boxing creationist possibly becoming senator from Alabama. Calamity looms elsewhere. We are hurtling toward war with North Korea. It may be as early as next month. […]

It wasn’t in the middle of a farmer’s muddy field or deep in the boreal forest where the Canadian oilsands truly struck pay dirt. It was inside Fort McMurray’s recreation centre. More than 1,400 oilpatch workers, corporate executives, provincial leaders and the country’s prime minister assembled 21 years ago in northern Alberta to grasp a […]

Google’s powerful search engine is defeating some court-ordered publication bans in Canada and undermining efforts to protect young offenders and victims. Computer experts believe it’s an unintended, “mind-boggling” consequence of Google search algorithms. In six high-profile cases documented by the Citizen, searching the name of a young offender or victim online pointed to media coverage […]

Almost Done!

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.

Postmedia wants to improve your reading experience as well as share the best deals and promotions from our advertisers with you. The information below will be used to optimize the content and make ads across the network more relevant to you. You can always change the information you share with us by editing your profile.

By clicking "Create Account", I hearby grant permission to Postmedia to use my account information to create my account.

I also accept and agree to be bound by Postmedia's Terms and Conditions with respect to my use of the Site and I have read and understand Postmedia's Privacy Statement. I consent to the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of my information in accordance with the Postmedia's Privacy Policy.